A Billion Stars Can’t Amount to You - Chapter 484-491
Used your body… Director Lin’s words became more and more cutting as Ji Yi’s face turned red from agitation. Her hands over her knees clenched into fists and started to tremble gently.
Having been rendered speechless by director Lin earlier, Zhuang Yi decided to speak up again at that very moment: “Director Lin, you have to have evidence for what you say. For you to criticize people without any proof like this really makes it impossible to believe. Additionally, Ji Yi only replied to you, yet you used her words to give her an ultimatum if she doesn’t sign? With that logic, aren’t you just shoving false words down people’s throats?”
“How am I trying to shove false words down her throat? I’m giving Miss Ji a chance to prove that she has skills. Didn’t she say she was innocent? If so, then Mr. He signed her for her own skills, and if she does have her own skills, she won’t have to worry about not being able to work in the industry. Even if YC canceled her contract, she won’t have to worry about other people signing her with her skill set,” said director Lin cleverly. Then she averted her gaze to Ji Yi. “Unless Miss Ji doesn’t want to sign because she doesn’t actually have any skills? Or! Miss Ji’s so-called skills are only in the bedroom?”
“Director Lin, you’re obviously not doing this for the company, but you’re trying to force Ji Yi away!” Zhuang Yi lost her cool from director Lin’s aggressive words as her voice became a little agitated.
“Yes, I’m trying to push her out!” Director Lin had always been quick-tempered. With Zhuang Yi’s retaliation, her demeanor suddenly became more overbearing. “She ruined the hard work of countless people at YC, she made YC suffer severe losses, and she wasted a great opportunity handed right to her. I can’t think of any good traits about her. If I don’t push her out, who would?!”
“Director Lin, who are you trying to push out?” A second after director Lin spoke, the conference room doors flew open, and a cold voice floated in.
All of a sudden, the atmosphere in the room froze for a moment. Then everyone’s heads turned to look over at the conference door in unison.
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He Jichen walked in dressed in a simple black suit, looking worn out from his travels.
Hurriedly following behind him was Chen Bai.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, the two of them quickly walked over to the conference table.
That was when everyone in the conference room snapped to their senses and intuitively straightened up as they cried, “Mr. He.”
He Jichen acted like he hadn’t heard them as he ignored everyone’s greetings and stopped in front of Ji Yi.
He didn’t say anything but he lowered his head and stared at the cast on Ji Yi’s leg.
He looked at her for about ten seconds before his gaze rose to Ji Yi’s face.
She didn’t look particularly good as annoyance emerged from her darkened eyes.
He Jichen didn’t make a sound but furrowed his brows then his gaze fell on other people’s faces.
Zhuang Yi had a faint hint of anger between her brows; a vague sense of discomfort appeared in director Lin’s eyes…
He Jichen’s gaze couldn’t help but linger longer over director Lin.
Deep down inside, director Lin was terrified by He Jichen’s glare as she couldn’t help but speak out. “Mr. He, weren’t you in America on a business trip? Why are you back now?”
He Jichen heard what director Lin said, but he didn’t have any intention of replying.
After receiving Zhuang Yi’s call, he immediately rushed back. After a thirteen-hour plane journey, it was eight in the morning in Beijing when he landed at the airport.
As soon as he got off the plane, he headed straight for the office without stopping at home.
When he and Chen Bai stepped into the lobby of the office, he happened to bump into Cheng Weiwan, who dropped by for a meeting about the script. She was chatting with the lady at the front desk, so she didn’t notice him and Chen Bai. Cheng Weiwan didn’t turn around until the lady at the front desk greeted him with a shocked expression because he was still supposed to be in America.
In contrast with the front desk lady’s shock, Cheng Weiwan looked unfazed and straightened up from leaning on the front desk. She strutted over to him in her high heels and said, “Xiao Yi’s also in the office. She was called into conference room two by director Lin.”
Ji Yi twisted her ankle. Why did she still come into the office today?
Hearing this, He Jichen didn’t say a word to Cheng Weiwan. He walked right into the elevator and headed upstairs.
As he emerged from the elevator, he ignored the greetings of all the office workers. He headed right for conference room two, but before he could push open the door, he heard director Lin’s voice inside saying: “If I don’t push her out, who should be pushed out then?!”
Although he didn’t know what happened in the conference room, he could sense that it wasn’t anything good, so he immediately pushed open the doors and stepped in.
The expressions of Ji Yi, Zhuang Yi, and director Lin definitely showed that they were in some kind of an argument…
He Jichen continued to stare at director Lin for some time before he glanced at the file in front of Zhuang Yi.
He didn’t move any closer but instead, he turned his head towards Chen Bai.
Chen Bai immediately walked over to the documents and started to flip through them.
Soon enough, Chen Bai closed the file and glanced first at director Lin before he turned to He Jichen and replied, “Mr. He, this file is a contract termination.”
Contract termination document?
He Jichen creased his brows. A second later, he snatched the documents from Chen Bai’s hands.
He flipped the file open and read through it for about three seconds before slamming it onto the table hard. He stared at director Lin and said with a cold voice, “What’s going on?”
The corners of director Lin’s lips twitched, but she didn’t say anything and lowered her eyelids.
He Jichen stared deeply at director Lin. After some time, he realized she wasn’t going to say anything, so he gave up questioning her. Instead, he looked right at Ji Yi and spoke with a far calmer voice than the cold tone he used with director Lin earlier. “What’s going on?”
When Ji Yi heard He Jichen’s voice, her eyelids shot open. She glanced at him then lowered her head.
She wasn’t trying to be uncooperative and not say anything, but she really didn’t know how she could tell He Jichen about what happened. After all, director Lin said some overly harsh things, so there was no way she could repeat them.
In comparison to how he waited for director Lin to speak earlier, He Jichen now seemed much more patient.
He didn’t urge Ji Yi to talk, so no one else dared to make a sound. The entire conference room fell silent.
After about five minutes, He Jichen gave up waiting for Ji Yi to speak as he looked over at Zhuang Yi, sitting next to Ji Yi. “Zhuang Yi, you talk. What the hell is going on?!”
All of a sudden, Zhuang Yi instinctively raised her head and shot He Jichen a glance.
Ji Yi was her artist and they’d gotten along quite well since they started working together, but she had her reservations.
Director Lin was her boss at the office, so if she spoke out, that’d be equivalent to offending director Lin. She was afraid her days at the office wouldn’t be so easy afterward.
Zhuang Yi hesitated for a moment then her gaze fell on director Lin sitting nearby.
Director Lin happened to be staring unwaveringly at Zhuang Yi. Their eyes met and the corners of Zhuang Yi’s lips twitched, but no sound came out.
He Jichen was losing his patience, so when he saw Zhuang Yi looking over at director Lin, he was instantly infuriated and said, “I asked you a question! Why’re you looking at her?”
Zhuang Yi’s body trembled for a moment after he lectured her. She hurriedly withdrew her gaze from director Lin, but this time, she didn’t dare glance at He Jichen. She stared at the table in front of her without daring to let her eyes wander.
“Go on, Zhuang Yi…” He Jichen spoke again with a gentler voice than before. Yet there was a strong oppressive feeling in his words as he continued: “…tell me every detail about what just happened in the conference room. Don’t miss a single word and tell me every single thing!”
Zhuang Yi knew director Lin was watching her, but He Jichen was putting a lot of pressure on her. She stayed silent for about three seconds before her fingers twitched. She finally spoke up. “Ji Yi got into an accident yesterday and we got a call on the way home after we left the hospital. Director Lin called to ask me to bring Ji Yi to the office. Since the cast on Ji Yi’s leg hadn’t completely set yet, I suggested to director Lin that we meet today.”
“Director Lin agreed. I thought director Lin wanted to talk to Ji Yi, but I never imagined that there’d be a board of directors here. As soon as we came into the conference room, director Lin didn’t say anything and tossed the termination contract right in front of Ji Yi for her to sign.”
The conference room was really quiet. Aside from Zhuang Yi’s low voice, no other sounds could be heard.
“Then I told director Lin that the issue wasn’t that serious. Director Lin countered that Ji Yi made the company suffer millions in losses. Her fall ruined everything that the company arranged for her…”
As Zhuang Yi said this, she stopped for a moment. She raised her head then slowly glanced at He Jichen. She realized his eyes were staring straight at her. He looked like he was waiting for her to finish speaking. She pursed her lips and recounted the overbearing things director Lin said. “…Director Lin called Ji Yi a disappointment and she asked how she could work in showbiz!”
As He Jichen heard this, he furrowed his brows. Although he didn’t make a sound, a hint of coldness crept up between his brows.
“Then director Lin said that Ji Yi breached the contract and made the company suffer losses. She told her to sign it. Ji Yi didn’t sign but she apologized to director Lin.”
Apologized? He Jichen furrowed his brows even tighter.
“I think Ji Yi didn’t think things over properly as she didn’t deny anything. I helped say a few words defending Ji Yi and promised that something like this would never happen again. However, director Lin said…” As she thought about what director Lin said next, Zhuang Yi paused for a few seconds again. Then she continued to repeat what director Lin said. “…the company wouldn’t support such a useless person!”
Useless person?
Streaks of white appeared on He Jichen’s remarkably handsome face. An icy air slowly exuded from his body.
Zhuang Yi knew He Jichen’s formidable anger wasn’t because of her, but she was still scared to speak again as she continued with a lot more fear and trepidation: “I told director Lin she was going overboard, but director Lin asked what kind of right did someone like Ji Yi have to say someone went overboard when she had no redeeming qualities herself.”
“Since director Lin kept pushing Ji Yi to sign, Ji Y asked if it was your idea.”
“Then director Lin said she could call the shots, and even if it wasn’t up to her, the entire board of directors decided this last night. All the representatives of the company were here, so Ji Yi could ask them one by one.”
As Zhuang Yi’s words entered He Jichen’s ears, he turned his body slightly and swept a look at the company reps around the conference table.
When they caught his gaze, none of them dared to meet his eyes. They either looked down at the documents in their hands or averted their gaze elsewhere.
Zhuang Yi was just an employee, and since she already offended director Lin, she didn’t dare to offend everyone else in the room. Therefore, she skipped over the part when everyone nodded, backing up director Lin’s words. “After director Lin finished, she asked Ji Yi if she had a special intention by bringing up Mr. He.”
“Director Lin even said that the only reason Ji Yi mentioned you was because Ji Yi’s relationship with you wasn’t normal; she accused her of using you to threaten her.”
“But director Lin said that even if it was your idea to sign Ji Yi to the company, since Ji Yi breached the contract, she had the right to terminate the contract.”
Zhuang Yi pursed her lips, turned her head, and glanced over at Ji Yi. “Director Lin told Ji Yi that she used despicable methods to make you sign her and that she’d seen a lot of women like her who used their sex appeal…” continued Zhuang Yi.
Zhuang Yi didn’t dare look at He Jichen, but she felt a stern air exuding from the man’s body after she said the four words “used her sex appeal.” The sight of him made her tremble with fear.
The pitch of her voice involuntarily dropped. “…She also said that this was a lesson to Ji Yi to not use her youth and looks to use men to make it to the top. She said Ji Yi had no strengths so she was trash!”
“Because director Lin spoke so boldly, Ji Yi was a little agitated at the time and said that director Lin was maliciously attacking her and subjectively criticizing her.”
“Then director Lin told Ji Yi that if she wanted to prove her innocence, she had to sign the contract termination papers.”
“Ji Yi didn’t sign, so director said she was admitting to using her body to get into YC.”
He Jichen, who had been quietly listening to Zhuang Yi, suddenly spoke out. “Is there any more?”
Zhuang Yi gently nodded and moved her lips a few seconds later. “I told director Lin that she was just shoving false words down Ji Yi’s throat. Director Lin said in order for Ji Yi to have been signed, she must’ve had some skill, so she shouldn’t be afraid of terminating the contract. Then director Lin asked Ji Yi whether her so-called skills were actually just…”
“Just what?” asked He Jichen as he noticed Zhuang Yi’s voice slowing down.
“…in bed…”
Zhuang Yi sounded as quiet as a fly, but He Jichen heard her clearly.
“…And then, Mr. He, you came in and heard everything else that was said…”
The final word barely left Zhuang Yi’s mouth before He Jichen suddenly kicked a chair beside him.
The sheer force of his kick sent the office chair flying. It crashed into the filing cabinet nearby with an ear-splitting “Bang!”
The people at the front of the conference table shook in unison. Then everyone held their breaths and lowered their heads simultaneously.
“I signed her. It appears director Lin has a problem with the person I selected. Oh, a big problem… You even dared to take matters into your own hands without even consulting me! I see that the CEO of YC isn’t He Jichen any longer. It’d be more fitting if that title went to Lin Yang! Isn’t that right, director Lin?”
When those harsh words left He Jichen’s mouth, a disdainful, cold smirk emerged as his eyes fell on the row of YC staff members around the conference table. “And each and every one of you. Did you all have the same thought?”
He Jichen’s accusations were overbearingly stern as they startled everyone in the conference room. Everyone’s hearts jumped in astonishment. Not only did they not speak, but they didn’t dare budge an inch either.
He Jichen’s eyes brushed over each and every rep at YC. In the end, his gaze stopped on director Lin. “Director Lin was really thinking about what was best for YC. Even I wanted to applaud you when I heard about it! Don’t you think I should give you an embroidered flag now and call you the most loyal official at YC?”
Director Lin’s expression shifted slightly as her fingers gripped the desk tightly, still not daring to make a sound.
“What? Director Lin, aren’t you always good at talking? Why aren’t you speaking in front of me? Alright, if you don’t speak, I will!”
He Jichen’s brows instantly turned icy the second the words came out of his mouth. “Director Lin was right. Today, in this very conference room, there will be a resignation signed!”
“But, it’s not for her. It’s for you!”
As he said this, He Jichen raised his voice. “Chen Bai!”
“Here, Mr. He,” cried Chen Bai hurriedly.
“Call the human resources manager over!” said He Jichen.
“Yes, Mr. He.” After Chen Bai replied, he hurriedly turned around and retreated out of the conference room.
Human resources was on the same floor. Just outside of conference room two, the human resources office was on the left.
In under a minute, Chen Bai returned with the human resources manager.
The human resources manager didn’t even have time to say “Mr. He” as He Jichen cried, “Prepare director Lin for her resignation!”
The human resources manager noticed He Jichen’s demeanor and didn’t dare ask why, so he responded with “yes” and immediately followed his boss’ orders.
Soon enough, resignation papers were brought before director Lin.
Director Lin stared at the papers for some time before she pursed her lips, raised her head and looked over at He Jichen. “Mr. He, I did it for the company. What’s more, Mr. He, I didn’t make this decision alone. It was a decision made by the shareholders over a vote last night at the board of directors conference…”
“What a joke!” It was like He Jichen heard a funny joke as he let out a cold laugh. “When was it ever up to the board of directors to make decisions on the person I, He Jichen, signed to the company?”
Having been interrupted by He Jichen, director Lin fell silent for some time as she stared at him with a defiant gaze. She wanted to defend herself, but just as she was about to move her lips, He Jichen shot Chen Bai an impatient look.
Although He Jichen didn’t say a word, Chen Bai knew his intentions. He immediately turned around and walked out of the conference room as he reached for his phone to make a call.
When the conference room doors opened again, Chen Bai wasn’t the only person who stepped in. There were two security guards behind him.
Chen Bai had left the room to order the security guards to follow him. After they entered, they called out “Mr. He” and walked over to director Lin’s side. They forced the pen into her hands and forced her hand down to the signature portion of the document.
Director Lin couldn’t fight back under the force of one man let alone two men.
While writing her name in the signature box, director Lin figured that since she was going to be kicked out, she might as well rant. “Mr. He, aren’t you going overboard? What did I do wrong? I was just mitigating our losses on behalf of the company! I did it for the company. She made the company lose so much, yet you actually indulge her. Do you dare admit there’s nothing shameful going on between the two of you? Do you dare admit that she didn’t use her body to cling onto you and join Y…”
Director Lin didn’t manage to finish when He Jichen suddenly bent over. He picked up the letter of authorization she previously threw at Ji Yi and smushed it onto her face. “I’m warning you to be careful about what you say. You can insult me but don’t insult her in front of me! Don’t insinuate there’s some shameful relationship between us. Even if there is, I’m the one clinging onto her!”
With a headache from being thrashed around, director Lin raised her hand to cover her face. She stared into He Jichen’s eyes, full of discontentment. “Mr. He, you’re clearly making decisions on your own without considering anyone else’s opinion. By recklessly making decisions like this by yourself over a woman, it will disappoint everyone in the company. Did you know that people in the company have their objections about that woman? If you don’t believe me, ask everyone sitting here now!”
“Objections?” A trace of hatred crossed He Jichen’s ruggedly handsome face as a rare tone of defiance entered his voice. “I’ll see who dares to have objections against the person I protect! For every person who stands up, I’ll purge one person. For two, I’ll purge the pair!”
After he finished speaking, He Jichen didn’t give director Lin a chance to speak before he viciously ordered the two security guards behind her: “Take her away!”
The security guards didn’t reply to He Jichen’s thunderous words but they grabbed director Lin by an arm each and quickly took her out of the conference room.
As the door shut, the conference room slipped into a temporary silence.
After several seconds, He Jichen’s stern gaze swept over the other reps at the conference table. “What about you guys? Whoever objects can stand up right now. The human resources manager is here to help you with your resignations. I definitely won’t stop you from leaving!”
Everyone present was silent; no one dared to make a sound.
He Jichen sat quietly for a few minutes. Seeing as no one was speaking, he said, “Since no one has any objections, I’m making some arrangements. We’ll have a meeting later!”
As He Jichen’s voice fell, he turned around to look at Ji Yi sitting beside him.
She looked the same as when he saw her upon walking into the conference room. She still had her head down, staring at her hands like a child who did something wrong.
With her in this state, He Jichen felt waves of discomfort and a subtle ache from the bottom of his heart.
He already felt a pain worse than death over the accident from three years ago. He was really afraid of a repeat, so he racked his brains and signed her to YC just to put her in a world under his control to protect her well.
Yet under his careful watch, she still went through hardship…
The more He Jichen thought about it, the more his heart ached. He stared at her for a short while then calmed down. He bent over slightly, drew closer to her ear and whispered, “I have a meeting to lead in a while. How about you get some rest in the lounge for a bit?”
Ji Yi raised her head and glanced over at He Jichen. She didn’t say a word but gently nodded.
He Jichen then straightened up and looked over at Zhuang Yi sitting beside Ji Yi. “Stay with her.”
“Yes, Mr. He.” Zhuang Yi got up and pushed Ji Yi’s wheelchair aside then told He Jichen, “Mr. He, we’ll head out first.”
He Jichen nodded and let out an “Mhm.”
Zhuang Yi was about to walk out when He Jichen suddenly remembered something and said, “That’s right…”
Zhuang Yi’s feet suddenly halted and she looked over at He Jichen.
He Jichen’s words were actually directed at Ji Yi. “There’s a lounge at the office. If you’re tired, go take a nap.”
Like before, Ji Yi only gave a gentle nod and didn’t speak.
He Jichen remained silent as Zhuang Yi pushed Ji Yi out.
After Zhuang Yi and Ji Yi left the office, He Jichen glanced at the high executives still present. He was just about to pull out a chair and take a seat when he realized something. He turned his head, looking for Chen Bai. “Give doctor Xia a call. Tell him to drop by the office.”
Even though Ji Yi already had her leg checked out at the hospital, he was still worried…
“Got it. I’ll call doctor Xia,” replied Chen Bai as he pulled his phone out.
–
After Zhuang Yi wheeled Ji Yi into He Jichen’s office, Ji Yi stared at the bright sun out the window without saying a word.
Zhuang Yi knew Ji Yi was upset and wanted to say a few words of comfort, but she wondered whether Ji Yi wanted to just be left alone at the moment, so she sat silently beside her.
Half an hour later, doctor Xia arrived at He Jichen’s office.
He Jichen hadn’t quite recovered from what happened at the office. Through it all, Chen Bai stood to one side as he watched doctor Xia examine Ji Yi’s wound.
After confirming that everything was fine, Chen Bai saw doctor Xia out.
Only the two of them, Ji Yi and Zhuang Yi were left in the office again.
Ji Yi had been silent from even before doctor Xia arrived.
It was mid-afternoon, yet He Jichen’s meeting still wasn’t over.
Chen Bai stopped by the office once to relay a message for Zhuang Yi to take Ji Yi downstairs to the canteen.
Zhuang Yi and Ji Yi went early, so there weren’t many people there.
There was lots of space for Ji Yi to move around, so Zhuang Yi found a seat, allowed Ji Yi to settle in and went over to the window to get their food.
As lunchtime came, people trickled into the canteen one after the other.
The people who passed by Ji Yi were all YC employees; their gazes always seemed to linger on her.
Ji Yi vaguely heard one of the female employees, who brushed past her, whisper into the ear of another lady, “It’s her. You see the one with the cast on her leg? That’s Ji Yi.”
After some time, people arrived to sit at the table behind Ji Yi.
Various men and women sat there, speaking quite loudly. Ji Yi could hear everything with complete clarity. From their words, she sensed that their relationships were good and they sounded mutually sarcastic.
Maybe they hadn’t noticed her or maybe they hadn’t recognized her from the back, but this loud group of people suddenly started to talk about her.
“Did you guys hear? Director Lin was fired earlier this afternoon.”
“I heard a bit about it. Do you know specifically how it happened?”
“It’s because of the artist our company signed. Yesterday, she accidentally fell off a short platform during a recording and sprained her ankle. She ruined all the jobs the company set up for her. Director Lin was angry and wanted to terminate her contract, but in the end, Mr. He protected her and fired director Lin…”
“I heard from director Lin’s assistant that the artist got into our company by sleeping with Mr. He.”
“That’s so normal… you gotta know that there’s a whole load of A-listers who want to sign up with the company, but in the end, Mr. He stubbornly chose her. There’s obviously something fishy going on behind the scenes!”
“I’ve seen her picture. She’s quite pretty, but there’s no lack of beautiful women in showbiz. Do you think she got signed because she’s so great in bed that she captivated our Mr. He to fall head over heels for her…?”
“I have no idea if she’s great in bed, but I think she’s a troublemaker. In the early afternoon, when I brought tea into the conference room during Mr. He’s meeting, the atmosphere was terrifying. Because of her, Mr. He argued with the board of directors. Do you guys know Mr. He signed some kind of agreement to say that if Ji Yi doesn’t generate enough revenue for the company within a year, he’ll give up his place as CEO of the company? I really don’t get it. What’s so good about that woman for Mr. He to protect her so much? She’s basically a femme fatale who’s going to ruin Mr. He sooner or later…”
Ji Yi pursed her lips when she heard this and instinctively balled her hands into fists.
Was He Jichen’s meeting about dealing with the consequences of yesterday’s mess?
Not only did he kick out director Lin for me, but he even signed a guarantee?
The table full of people behind her were still talking about her, but Ji Yi didn’t hear a single word.
Ji Yi didn’t snap back to reality until Zhuang Yi brought a food tray back to the table. Ji Yi glanced at Zhuang Yi without saying a word. She picked up the chopsticks and ate like a machine.
–
After He Jichen’s meeting was adjourned, she didn’t go downstairs to eat at the canteen. Instead, he went straight to the office.
He took off his suit and casually threw it on the sofa. Then he walked over to the tall windows and stared at the bright sunshine outside.
After about ten minutes, a knock came at his office door, but he didn’t look back or say a word.
After about a few seconds, the office door opened and Chen Bai walked in. He didn’t say anything but silently made his way to He Jichen and cried, “Mr. He.”
